Martin B-26 Marauder: The Wingless Wonder was the name of a variant of Avalon Hill's B-17: Queen of the Skies solitaire boardgame. A draft of B-26 was available for play testing which used the B-17: Queen of the Skies rules and B-17 was needed to play. Everything has changed since then, and B-26: The Marauder Strikes! has completly new mechanics and is a stand alone game. It is a solitaire game set on board a Martin B-26 Marauder medium bomber during World War Two in the European Theater of Opearations from July 1943 until the end of the war in May 1945.

B-26: The Marauder Strikes! is a big game in that there are many target lists, rules, mission maps and details which are not found in B-17: Queen of the Skies or B-29 Superfortress: Bombers over Japan. For example, the Damage Tables are more detailed than the earlier games and the combat system is similar, but completely new. The Target Lists include a large selection of targets attacked by B-26s from July 1943 until the end of the war in May 1945 and are placed on 13 maps (movement boards) which are different depending on where your base is located, from England to the Netherlands. Different models of the B-26 is also included from the early B-26 in 1941 until the B-26G which entered combat in October 1944. The earlier models are not used in the European Theater of Operations (the ETO) in which B-26: The Marauder Strikes! is set, but will be used in 22nd Bomb Group: Marauders from Australia, an add-on variant set in the Pacific in the war against Japan in New Guinea.

The rules in this Flight Manual try to reflect the twin engined B-26 Marauder and situations and events which the crews saw on their missions and historical accuracy has been an important guideline during the development of this game.

Players familiar with B-17: Queen of the Skies or B-29 Superfortress: Bombers over Japan recognize the mechanics used in B-26. One or more 6-sided dice are rolled on tables to plan the mission, to determine if enemy fighters appear, to hit with machine gun fire and to determine damage and wounds and much more. B-26 is as easy to play as B-17 with its basic system which is similar to the mechanics in B-17: Queen of the Skies. Players who have flown missions in B-17 may find that B-26 is similar, but more detailed and there are ideas included in B-26 which can be found in the B-17: Queen of the Skies community. If you add the advanced and optional guidelines you will find B-26 to become deep, detailed and complex, but still does not stray far from the simple mechanics of the basic system. You will also find yourself in situations where you have to make a decision.

The Core Game Flight Manual will be used to play the A-20 Havoc, A-26 Invader and B-25 Mitchell add-ons.

You can begin your campaign flying missions from bases in England or jump in later in the war when the B-26 groups had moved to the continent and you will find Mission Maps with your station either in England, France, Belgium or the Netherlands depending on when you fly your missions. Put together a crew, name your B-26 and fly missions over France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxemburg, Germany, Austria and Chechoslovakia!

B-25Posted by Magnus Kimura 2019-02-13 09:45:08The B-25D and J will have a bomb bay tank on missions 8 zones or longer. Also, in the B-25 expansion you will have MP-8, Bomb Load (Optional). MP-8 is a very short version of "Bomb Loads." On longer missions your bomb load will be smaller, 4 bombs maximum.

B-25 JThe final B-25 model was the J. It had a co-pilot and a green house nose with a bombardier. It had four package guns on the side of the fuselage a flexible .50 in the nose and one fixed .50, two fixed on later Js, the same tail green house as the H-model and also the same type of waist gun positions. The top turret was in front of the bomb bay. Later Js could carry rockets under the wings. They entered combat in April 1944 in the MTO and began to appear in the PTO during the summer and fall of that same year. There was also a strafer nose with eight .50 machine guns.

B-25J in B-26: The Marauder Strikes! In B-26: The Marauder Strikes! the B-25J will be represented by B-25J and B-25J-20. The B-25J reflects the earlier versions of the J-model and the J-20 later versions. It will have bomb wing racks and rocket capability and two fixed and one flexible nose gun. All B-25Js also have two package guns on each side of the fuselage, waist guns, tail guns with the gunner in a green house and the top turret between the cock-pit and bomb bay. The 8-gun strafer nose will be included in the Low-Level Missions expansion.

B-25Posted by Magnus Kimura 2019-01-23 14:22:48I am now working on the B-25 expansion, will focus on it after A-26 has been updated to FDD. B-25C/D are done so now B-25J is walking up to the Batter's Box.

If anyone would like to help with B-25, please write a short history about the bomber preferably 1½ to 2 pages long, maybe longer, Garamond, font 12.

I think I will wait with G & H and include them in the Low Level Missions expansion, but am not sure. Only the front of the bomber will be different, maybe the tail gun area too so I might include them too. B-25J will be next at any rate.

After B-25 is done I am going to focus on MTO and finish it before any other expansion, though I think I will have to work on Low Level Missions at the same time as there were some low level missions in the MTO. After MTO I will focus on A-26s from Okinawa.

We need better rules to attack ships and skip bombing.

We need better bomb run rules.

Maybe also better small formation rules and bombing results.

All ideas are welcome.

Why B-25 before MTO and then Okinawa? Because when B-25J and MTO are done you will be able to follow the 319th bomb group from North Africa to Okinawa in the B-26, B-25 and A-26. They flew the B-25 for two months over Italy before transfer to the US and transition to the A-26 and Okinawa. The Okinawa expansion is done but will need to be updated to FDD and maybe have better rules to attack convoys and ships.

And I forgot... I also have another idea about the B-25 and why I want to finish it soon. It's the 22nd BG in New Guinea. When B-25 is done and the 22nd (PTO) you will be able to fly 22nd BG missions with both the B-26 and B-25... and maybe also the B-24 after the medium bombers, but that is another story...

Plus... as a bonus, when B-25 is done, you can improvise RAF B-25 missions from England from January 1943. I will not cover RAF B-25 units and missions myself.

Oh oh and more! When you also have the A-26 to fly you could follow the 386th BG and maybe also the 391st. Just let me know if you'd like to have a mission list if you can't find it online. Almost all targets they attacked are included today in the Core Game. Also... have a look at the 309th Bomb Group...

I am working on it now, changing the A-26 rules quite a lot. 5 WI boxes are added on the mission chart, and I think I will delete one on the Fuel Consumption Chart. Each time you use WI you check 1-5 boxes. 2-5 if only one engine is dead.

WI will affect Evasive Action, and damaged engines, increase number of turns in formation, but the good engine may be damaged.

RULESPosted by Magnus Kimura 2019-01-19 12:34:52Here's an idea I'm working on now while I am updating the expansions to FDD.

CROSSFEED

As long as the Fuel Transfer pump is operating the first leak on two separate tanks are no effect. The second leak on one tank is Treated as a Leak on a third thank (Player’s choice). The first and second tanks will be considered empty from this point.

When the third tank is empty, the fourth tank is Treated as a Leak. If the third tank leaks before a second leak on another tank see 1st leak on main/outboard tank.

Should the fourth tank leak before the third tank is empty see first leak on main/outboard tank and keep track of how much fuel remains in each tank.

When the third tank is empty, fuel from the fourth tank supplies both engines. Divide the remaining fuel turns by 2 rounded up.

7.42.1 The B-26 is out of formation (see 7.45.0 Out of Formation) immediately after the attack (Initial/Successive/FLAK/Mechanical Failure - see A.5.26) and after all actions are finished in the current Turn the B-26 must begin the next Turn returning to base. (See also 7.42.4 to 6.)

7.42.2 Bombs must be dropped. If the bombs cannot be dropped the B-26 must crash land or the crew bail out at the end of the second turn at the latest. Jettison ammunition and machine guns to gain one more turn.

7.42.3 With one engine out and drag the crew must bail out Table BO-1b. If at 2000ft or lower Table BO-1c or crash landing on LT-1a (Land) or LW-1 (Water). Bail out or land at the end of the Turn.

7.42.4 If DRAG damage in the Target Zone by Mechanical Failures/Fighters: The B-26 is out of formation and the bombs must be dropped. It will not go through FLAK nor bomb with the Formation. After all actions are finished in the current Turn the B-26 must begin the next Turn returning to base. (See 7.42.6.)

7.42.5 If DRAG damage in the Target Zone by FLAK: The B-26 is out of formation and the bombs must be dropped. It will not bomb with the Formation. After FLAK in the current Turn the B-26 must begin the next Turn returning to base. (See 7.42.6.)

7.42.6 When returning the B-26 must go through two Turns in the current Turn and two turns in each of the following zones.

7.42.61 If returning in the Target Zone after FLAK, the first Turn has first FLAK (TZ-2) then Fighters on MT-2. The second Turn has only Fighters on MT-2. (If Advanced Table MT-1a is used, roll on it first each Turn.)

7.42.62 If already returning from Target the B-26 is out of formation and must go through one more turn in the current zone.

7.42.4 The mission may be aborted.

7.42.5 No Evasive Action (7.46.0) is allowed.

7.42.6 Drag & Fuel Consumption. (MAY CHANGE!)

7.43 SLOWED has been deleted. ALL FOLLOWING SECTIONS WILL BE RENUMBERED.